Oil-can.



1'. B. OHARA OIL CAN.

APPLICATION man NOV. s. 1915.

Patented June 4, 1918 INVENTOR dama/ 75. w

ATTORNEY a 29;. "la-' OIL-CAN.

Specificatiomof Letters Patent.

Patented June 4, 1918.

Application filed November 8, 1915. Serial No. 60,324;

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES B. OHARA, a citizen of the United States, residing at Elkton, in the county of Brookings and State of South Dakota, have invented cer-- tain new and useful Improvements in Oil- Cans, of which the following is a specification.

An. object of the present invention is to provide a: new and improved oil canthat includes improved means for effectually controlling the flow of oil therefrom the said means being'operable to allow the oil'to flow slowly from the feeding tube or to force the oil therefrom under pressure; thusincreas ing the utility of the device to a material extent by reason of the fact that it may be advantageously used in connection with various types of machinery and operated freely at almost any angle.

The above and other objects which Will become apparent, are accomplished'by such means as are shown in their preferred form in the accompanying drawings, described in the following specification and then more specifically pointed out in the appended claim.

In the accompanying drawings wherein like characters designate like parts throughout the several views;

Figure 1 is a fragmentary view of my improved oil can showing the same as in its preferred embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the device.

Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view taken on line 33 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a detailed view showing a modified method of mounting the operating lever in the wall of the container.

In the drawings the numeral 10 desig nates the body portion of the oil container that is preferably formed of sheet metal or other similar material having its bottom portion either formed integral therewith or secured thereto in a desirable manner. The upper end of this container is normally open so as to receive a closing cap 11. The marginal portion of the cap 11 is suitably'bent as shown at 12 to engage over the upper edge of the container 10 and thus provide means for retaining the same in a secure position. While the bent portion of the cap is sufficient to retain the same in a secure position under ordinary circumstances it may be advisable to solder or otherwise fix the same to the container in order to assure a more rigid connection. It is also pointed out that the cap may have screw threaded engagement with the container if it is so desired.

An oil chamber 13 is mounted centrally of and carried by the cap 11, this oil chamber being open at both its upper and lower ends as clearly shown in Fig; 2. The periphery of the chamber above its connection with the cap 11 may be provided with screw threads as shown at'la to accommodate other screw threads formed on the rim'15 of the feeding tubelG. In the event that the cap 11 is permanently mounted on the casing 10 the filling of the container may be accomplished by pouring the oil directly into the chamber 13. However onthe other hand should the cap 11 be removable the oil could be poured directly into the container. Vhile it is not absolutely essential it is pointed out that the chamber 13 may be formed integral with the cap 11. This would undoubtedly increase the cost of manufacture of the device to some extent but if circumstances should require it the chamber 13 may be removably connected to the cap 11.

I further provide the oil chamber 13 with an annular flange 13 which is arranged adjacent the lower end thereof and of a width to fit' snugly between the oil chamber and the inner wall of the container 10, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. The purpose of this flange is to conduct and guide the oil retained in the container 10, to the apertures 14 so that it may flow directly into the oil chamber 13.

The casing 10 carries an enlarged portion 17 that may be formed to project exteriorly of the same as shown in Fig. 3-. The other opening 18 is formed in the enlargement while the same is cut out adja cent one end as at 19 and receives a packing nut 20 as shown. One portion 21 of the operating lever 22 is made to extend through the opening 18, cut-out 19 and the packing nut 20 as clearly shown in Figs. 3 and 4: so that movement therein is permitted. Packing material, such as shown at 23, may be positioned in the cut-out 19.

The outer end of the operating lever 22 is formed into a finger engaging portion 24: to facilitate its operation while its inner end is formed into an eyelet 25 having pivotal connection with a plunger rod 26 as shown at 27. In turn, the plunger rod is provided with a detachable piston head 28 that operates freely within the oil chamber 13. It is pointed out that the piston head 28 normally assumes a position slightly below the apertures 14 so that when the container is inverted the oil will flow freely into the oil chamber 13 so that it may be dispensed through the spout 16.

In order to retain the operating lever in a position whereby the piston head 28 will be in its lowermost position within the chamber 13, an expansive spring 29 is interposed between the finger engaging portion 24 thereof and the. adjacent wheel of the container 10. In this connection it may be also pointed out that the wall of the container 10 may carry an outstanding stud 30 to receive the spring and prevent accidental displacement thereof.

In the operation of this device the operator inverts the container so that the oil held therein will flow freely through the apertures 14 to the oil chamber 13 and hence to the feed tube 16. In this manner the oil will be dispensed only very slowly through the feeding tube because of its heavy consistency. However if it is desired to increase the flow of oil the operator may simply exert a pressure upon the finger engaging portion of the operating lever which will cause the positive actuation of the piston head 28. The piston head 28 moving upwardly or rather inwardly with respect to the oil chamber forces the oil contained therein through the feeding tube at the desired rate.

In order to obviate accidental displace ment of the piston head 28 beyond the bottom of the chamber 18 the wall of the latter may be turned inwardly as shown at 31. This precludes any liability of the displacement of the piston head consequently greatly adding to the eiiiciency of the operation of the device.

From the foregoing it is believed that the advantages and novel features of my invention will be readily apparent; therefore further detailed description is deemed unnecessary.

In reducing my invention to practice I find that the form referred to herein as the most practical and preferred embodiment is the most efficient, but realizing that certain conditions will necessarily vary in concurrence with the adoption of my device, I desire to emphasize the fact that various minor changes in the details of construction and in the proportion of parts may be resorted to when required without sacrificing any of the advantages of my invention as defined in the appended claim.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

An oil can, comprising a body, a chamber within the upper part of the body and having a flange sloping outwardly and downwardly and having its marginal portion embracing the upper edge of the body, the lower end of the chamber being inturned and provided in its sides a short distance above the inturned end with lateral openings, a flange between the chamber and walls of the body and disposed adjacent and above the lateral openings, a piston within the chamber, means for operating the piston exterior to the body, and a tube at the outer end of the chamber.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JAMES B. OHARA.

Witnesses ALVIN QUINN, LEO ScHwEIcKERT.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

